Possible Life on Mars

Scientists have discovered methane in Mars' atmosphere, raising the possibility that life might exist on the planet. There are many reasons like methane could have been produced from past or present subsurface microorganisms, geological activity or comets striking the planet. Methane is the main component of natural gas on Earth. It is interesting to astrobiologists because organisms release much of Earth's methane as they digest nutrients. Other purely geological processes, like oxidation of iron, also release methane. "Microbes that produced methane from hydrogen and carbon dioxide were one of the earliest forms of life on Earth," said Carl Pilcher, director of the NASA Astrobiology Institute, which partially supported the research. "If life ever existed on Mars, it's reasonable to think that its metabolism might have involved making methane from Martian atmospheric carbon dioxide." At first I didn't really care, but now with all this info suggesting life that is perfectly plausible is making me believe that there could be life on Mars.



Ansari , Azadeh (January 15, 2009). Methane discovery could mean life on Mars. Retrieved January 17, 2009, from cnn.com/technology Web site: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/space/01/15/mars.methane/index.html?iref=newssearch